Marley's Chance
by Jennoist-OTP
Summary: SEQUEL TO RYDER'S CHANCE. Marley and Ryder thought they had got past the hardest obstacles last year, but Marley having an incredible opportunity in New York and Ryder being stuck in Lima is a different ball game. Have they got what it takes to survive, and where will Ryder go in the search for his purpose?
1. Chapter 1

**Wah I'm so excited to publish this, I've been planning this sequel for a while, even like halfway through the first story! If you haven't read **_**Ryder's Chance, **_**I would advise you to go and do that now ;) cos you know, this is a sequel, so it would be pretty confusing if you hadn't read the first story :p Anyways, I really hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Glee, which I don't, life would probably be a lot more enjoyable and *cough*, the show a lot better…**

Marley bounced excitedly into her dorm-room, trying to ignore the fact that Bree wasn't out yet and she couldn't have the room to herself while she skyped Ryder. She opened up her laptop and the video chat, before waiting for her boyfriend to come online. She had been at NYADA for just over a month now, and in another few weeks, Ryder was going to use up some (well, almost all) of the money he would have earned so far in his internship as a pharmacy technician at Lima Memorial Hospital (that his father had all but forced him into,) to come and visit her in New York for a long weekend. For now though, skype would have to do.

She herself was constantly busy. Her days were consumed with gruelling yet extremely rewarding singing, song-writing, music and other compulsory lessons, or building up yet more optional extra-curriculars, including a horrendous dance class with the notorious Cassie July, that she had decided to take just on the off chance that her life direction drastically changed overnight and she suddenly found herself as a bubble-gum pop princess... By night, she was trying her hardest to form a decent social life, but it was a lot harder than she had anticipated. Perhaps a lot of it was down to the rotten luck she had received in the form of her roommate, who had made every effort _not _to be friends with her. At times sharing a room with the knife-tongued Bree made her feel like she was back in high school again…she was like a female version of Rick the Stick, hell bent on making life difficult for people she didn't like but in a more snide, less physically violent way…

After what had seemed like hours of waiting, (in reality 5 minutes, tops,) her laptop speaker sounded and she grinned, accepting Ryder's video call, before he appeared on her laptop screen, hair dishevelled, slumped on his bed and looking very tired but still managing to smile for her.

"Hey baby!" She squealed. "Are you okay?"

"Hey! I'm okay, just tired, today was _long._" He grumbled.

"Long and _boring?" _She asked, eyebrow raised knowingly. Ryder just shrugged and mumbled something inaudible. "_Ryyyy…" _She sighed, drawing out the sound.

"It's fine Marls, just forget it," he said, but knew that Marley wasn't going to 'forget it' that easily.

"Ryder, this is important! You're doing training you don't want to be doing to get a career you don't want to have!"

"This career is better than _no _career," he pointed out.

"You could find another career that you do want!" She insisted. Ryder decided against reminding her that he had thrown away the only career he did want in favour of her getting into NYADA to avoid triggering all the guilt she felt about it, so merely sighed by way of reply. "I'm gonna tell you the same thing I told you that perfect night over summer. _New York has plenty of careers…_" She continued, hoping he would take the hint. He sighed, sitting up and adjusting his laptop with an apologetic smile.

"I know, but as _I_ said that night, I can't just drop my internship that's paying me well and giving me good training just to come to New York with zero plan…I'm gonna have to have something awesome lined up and put in concrete place if I'm gonna convince my Dad to let me-"

"Ryder we're adults now, it's your life, not your Dad's-" Marley protested, but was interrupted.

"Marley, he's kind of been buying me stuff my entire life…I didn't have to work a day or lift a finger until this internship. I really have to start paying my parents back for being a spoilt rich kid for over eighteen years, and if this internship in Lima's going to do that, then that's what I'll do."

Marley sighed sadly. She knew she didn't have an argument to counteract that one.

"Marley, I love you, and I miss you so, so much. But you know, this crappy living situation isn't going to be forever. I'm gonna come see you soon, and…just cos I'm training in Lima, doesn't mean I have to live here forever. The internship's only a year and I'm already through a month of it…there's like a zillion pharmacies and stuff in New York City I could come work in then," he reasoned. Marley smiled sadly and nodded.

"You're right," she admitted. "And I love you too. But you know Ry, none of this changes the fact that you don't _want _to be a pharmacist's assistant your whole life. It kills me…seeing you trapped like this and it's all my fault…will you promise me you'll at least look into other career options that you could put to your Dad?" She asked, turning on the puppy-eyes she knew he couldn't resist.

"I _promise,_" he sighed. "I promise I'll _look. _But I definitely can't promise anything will come of it."

"I know," she assured him. "But trying is something, isn't it?"

"It is," he conceded. "Now can we _please _change the subject?"

"Of course," she said with a smile, happy that he had agreed to at least try to find something other than his boring pharmacy job that kept him hundreds of miles away from her. "So um…what did you do today? Oh…right…you went to work…um…what have you done since I last spoke to you?"

"Hmm, let's see," Ryder sighed. "I worked, worked, and…when I stopped working…I slept."

"Right…"

"What have you been up to?" He asked, helping her move the conversation along.

"Same. Going to classes which are still tough, but I _did _get some praise for a chorus I wrote for a song…um…" she trailed off.

"That's good. How's…your roommate?" Ryder asked, grasping at straws. It was all Marley could do not to roll her eyes.

"Yeah, she's-"

"I'm great," Bree interrupted, walking into view of the webcam and putting on a sickening sweet smile. Marley could have sworn she saw her bat her eyelashes flirtatiously, and interrupted herself, possessively.

"She's great," she snapped perhaps a little too quickly, before regaining her composure and trying to find something else to say. "Umm…yeah"

"Yeah…" Ryder echoed awkwardly.

"Well…I guess that's all for now," Marley sighed, once the silence got a little too long to bear.

"Yeah I guess," Ryder agreed. "I love you!"

"I love you too! Bye!" After blowing each other a couple of kisses, they hung up, and Marley tried in vain to push the feeling of disappointment from her mind. It wasn't helped when Bree stepped in.

"Aww, trouble in paradise sweetie?" She asked, her voice laden with delicious sarcasm.

"What? No," Marley snapped, huffing and lying down on her bed, facing away from her.

"Are you sure?" Bree pressed. "Because you haven't skyped loverboy in like a week, and you only talked for like 10 minutes, and most of it was fighting."

"Ok, we weren't fighting," Marley argued, sitting back up again. "We were having a civilised debate over Ryder's long term career plans. And it was much longer than ten…oh…" she exclaimed, checking her laptop screen. It was _less _than ten minutes.

"If I knew any better I'd say loverboy's getting bored with his prudish little virgin," she taunted, getting up to hiss right into Marley's ear. "And a waste too, he looks hot on camera. It would just be such a _shame_ if, when he comes to visit, he comes here, deprived of female attention for weeks on end, and knows he can get what he wants in _one _of our beds…and it's not going to be yours, is-"

"Just STOP!" Marley shrieked. "You have no idea what Ryder's like, you've never even met him! Don't you have some party to be at or something?!"

"Yeah, actually I do," Bree replied, still smirking. "Shame you're not invited," she laughed, picking up her purse and strutting out of their dorm.

Marley sighed and collapsed down on to her pillow. Bree was trashy, but it wasn't her threats of seduction that really concerned her…it was what she said about their skype call…less than ten minutes. Just a few weeks ago she and Ryder had spent countless summer nights curled up in Ryder's back garden, kissing and cuddling and chatting and laughing away for hours at a time until Millie called in a state wondering where her daughter was. It terrified Marley that things had gotten so…awkward between them in such a short space of time. All she could do was hope that things weren't like this when he came to visit. She sighed and pulled her personal notebook and a pen out of her bedside table drawer. It was fantastic inspiration for her song-writing…just not the kind of inspiration she particularly wanted…

**Woo chapter one! I know it was mainly just a skype call, but I wanted to give some background about where Ryder and Marley are right now from where we left off, before things actually **_**happen **_**in the next chapter…I would love, love, love some feedback, especially as it's the first chapter!**

**Lauren xxx**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for your warm response to chapter 1! Here is chapter 2, and I hope, a new Marley's Chance brotp ;)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee, how many times must I say this?**

Marley sat sadly in her song-writing class, trying and failing to ignore the whispers and giggles from Bree and her vicious gang at the back of the class that were clearly aimed at her. She would have reached for her phone to send Ryder a text in the hope of a comforting response, but, if she was being completely honest, she didn't even know what to say to him, so she instead tried as best as she could to focus on what their teacher was droning on about.

"…So that's why we've decided to revive the mentoring scheme, so that you freshmen can have an elder, more experienced student to call on for any help or advice you need in both your academic and personal lives here at NYADA. The sign-up sheet is on my office door now so you can sign up after class if you so wish. Now, onto today's class…"

Marley furrowed her brow and thought carefully about the idea. She needed a _friend _for starters, and goodness knows she needed some advice about dealing with Bree's bullying and the small fact that she and the boy she was supposed to be in love with were just about keeping their relationship alive with brief, almost formal Skype conversations every Friday lasting half an hour tops. So, with this in mind, she plodded along to the sign-up sheet after class and put down her name, and had, about a week later, been assigned a girl by the name of Santana Lopez as her mentor, and had agreed via email to meet her for coffee after class.

Ten minutes after meeting, Marley had decided that signing up for a mentor had been a good decision. Santana was loud, brash, uncouth and dressed unashamedly provocatively, but Marley had wanted life advice, and she knew she could get that here.

"So," the latina said with purpose. "Enough about your bitchy little roommate, whose ass I promise to kick, tell me something juicy. You getting any?" Marley's chin dropped, before she regained her composure and replied with a splutter.

"Um…I have a boyfriend, if that's what you mean," she replied, supressing a nervous giggle.

"Nice. Is he cute?" Santana asked.

"Very," Marley told her instantly with a wistful sigh.

"But?" Santana pushed.

"But what?"

"You just look like maybe there's something not so great about it." _Damn, this girl was good._

"Ok," Marley admitted. "I really love him, but I just feel like since I've been in New York, we've been growing apart…you know?"

"Oh I know all right. Classic. High school sweethearts, think they're gonna be together forever, the adult real world smacks them in the face, they break up, feel like the world's ending for like two weeks and like a month later they've moved on and in a couple of years they barely remember it." Marley's eyes widened at Santana's nonchalance.

"That's _not _gonna happen to me and Ryder," she clarified. "…Is it?" Santana shrugged in a 'yes-it-probably-is-but-I-don't-want-to-hurt-the-kid's-feelings' kind of way. "It's not," Marley exclaimed again, trying to convince herself as much as her new mentor. "He's coming to visit in a few weeks anyway. I'm sure we just need to see each other in person and the spark will be back."

"If you're so sure," Santana offered. "In that case at least you'll get a bit more sex before you call it quits." Marley had unfortunately been taking a swig of her coffee at this precise moment and consequently sprayed her mouthful across the table in shock. She was about to correct Santana, before realising that having a conversation about her virginity was probably too much for a first meeting. Santana merely chuckled at her.

"Can we please change the conversation?" Marley asked when she had recovered. "What about you? Do you have a boyfriend?"

"Oh no," Santana replied. "I'm actually into girls." Marley tried to hide her shock, but her expression clearly betrayed her, as Santana rolled her eyes.

"Sorry!" She said, realising immediately. "It's totally fine, I don't care at all, I was just surprised, is all, because you know, you…" she trailed off, leaving Santana to chuckle again.

"Let me guess. I 'don't look like a lesbian?'" Marley merely shuffled apologetically. "Girl, you have Ohio written all over you. In fact, I'm making this my mission. I'm gonna turn you into a real New Yorker….by the time your boy-candy comes to visit he's gonna be so wowed by your big-city sexiness that all your problems will vanish in an instant."

"Really?" Marley asked with a warm smile.

"Really. But first, I'm gonna tell the skank you share a dorm room with to back the hell off."

Marley grinned. _Definitely _a good decision.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

When Marley arrived at her dance class the next day, she found Santana waiting for her outside the door.

"Hey Marley. Just thought I'd let you know that your roommate won't be bothering you anymore."

"What?" Marley asked, confused.

"Let's just say she's not so big and tough when she's dealing with Snix."

"Snix?"

"My angry alter-ego. See you later." With that, Santana was leaving, a worryingly satisfied expression etched on her face. Marley stepped into the room and found that the atmosphere wasn't quite its usual hostile self. Cassandra July was still a terrifying presence, even when sorting out the stereo in the corner of the room, but Bree sat quietly on the floor, looking incredibly shaken. Marley wasn't sure she wanted to know what 'Snix' had said or done to her. However, as soon as Bree made eye-contact with her, she knew it had horribly backfired. Bree scrambled to her feet and marched over to Marley, hot tears still wetting her eyes.

"You are going to pay _so hard for this,_" she hissed.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

That evening, Marley put off going home to her dorm for as long as possible. She knew that Bree would in all likelihood beat her up when she did. However, when it got dark and cold, and the Manhattan streets became scary and threatening, she knew she had no choice but to face her fate.

As she approached the NYADA dorm building, she immediately noticed a large pile of trash on the sidewalk outside, waiting for collection in the morning…except tomorrow was a Wednesday, and the trash was collected on Friday. As she got closer and closer, she saw what it really was: all of the possessions that _had _been in her dorm-room had been thrown unceremoniously from the window: every item of clothing, every photo, every electric device. Her precious song-writing notepad lay, some of the pages torn, sodden in a muddy puddle, clearly destroyed beyond use, her work lost. The laptop that her Mother had saved up to get her as a college going away present was smashed to smithereens. Even her single _bed _had been dismantled and thrown along with everything else.

She stood there frozen still for several minutes, her mouth hanging open at the sight of her life laying broken on the concrete, tears falling uncontrollably down her cheeks, whimpering slighty, until she was interrupted from her horror-filled trance by the sound of a window –her and Bree's dorm window-, opening above, and lo and behold, Bree herself looked out and down, laughing at Marley's plight.

"Good luck finding a new dorm," she mocked. "Ooh, I am _loving _my spacious new room." Marley tried to find a cutting retort, but merely let out a choked sob in reply, which only made Bree laugh harder. "You are _so _pathetic," she continued. "May I remind you that you brought this on yourself? No-one likes a snitch, _bitch._" With that, the window had been slammed shut, and Marley was left alone in the quiet darkness again. She fumbled in her bag for her cell phone and hurriedly called the first person she thought of, in spite of their troubles; Ryder. When he answered, she instantly launched into a hysterical retelling of what had happened.

"Marls I'm so sorry, I wish I could be there to hug you so much but…I'm hundreds of miles away, I don't know how I can help," he sighed. "Do you have a friend you can call on, maybe spend the night at their dorm until you can sort things out in the morning when your RA's around?" He asked with a sigh.

"Yeah…yeah I guess I could call my mentor," she sniffled.

"Okay, that's a good idea. I love you, precious. Good night, and try not to panic too much," he told her.

"Goodnight…I love you too, and I miss you now more than ever," she cried, before hanging up and finding Santana's number, telling her the same story when she picked up the phone. Twenty minutes later, a cab was pulling up and her mentor was hopping out.

"Wait here," she told the taxi driver, before jogging over to Marley as best she could in her high heels, and pulling her into a hug.

"Can any of your stuff be saved?" She asked. Marley shrugged. "You have a little look while I go and smack that bitch-"

"No! Santana please...don't," she begged. "Telling you about her is kind of what got me into this mess." A slight look of guilt came over Santana's expression.

"Get in the cab," she ordered. "We'll leave this stuff here, it's probably all ruined. You can stay at my place."

"Really? Won't your roommate mind?"

"Bitch please, I'm way to fabulous for dorms, I rent a private apartment, and it has a spare room since my hobbit roommate moved out to go live with her Frankenteen boyfriend," she explained with a slight smirk. "_Get in the cab," _she repeated.

"Thank you," Marley whispered, hugging her again before doing as she was told.

**So? Martana = brotp here? I hope so! So what's gonna happen next? Tell me your theories, and what you thought of this chapter :) (Also, I know this was a very Marley-centric chapter, but Ryder will be very much back next chapter, and *spoiler* a ryley reunion may not be too far away ;)**

**To my reviewers:**

_**TeaAndGlee: **_**Hooray! I'm so happy you liked the start…hm, so now I'm wondering what you thought of Bree in **_**this **_**chapter, haha**

_**RocioMelinatic15: **_**Aw, this makes me happy, I hope you enjoyed this chapter too :)**

_**Ember411: **_**Haha, yeah I'm afraid she is! Well, she's certainly not great for Marley right now!**

_**Guest: **_**Aw, I'm glad you're reading it :p Well, a lot of the story will be focused on finding himself with regards to that- starting with the next chapter.**

_**Chubby4567: **_**I'm glad you love it, here is an update :)**

_**Savannaramirez35: **_**Haha, I'll mostly try not to, in fact I'll definitely be giving them some **_**very **_**good stuff soon ;)**

_**Jessica M: **_**Oh good! I hope you continue to enjoy the story :D**

**Thanks also to followers/favers :)**

**Lauren xxx **


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys, hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee, otherwise I wouldn't write fanfiction. Duh.**

"So let me get this straight," Ryder said, on the phone to Marley. "You've moved in with a senior chick you met like a week ago."

"Ok…when you put it like that I know it sounds absurd, but…she needs help with rent, she's looking for a roommate anyway, and I don't want to go back to my dorm. Plus she's super nice, she's like a guardian angel and a really awesome friend all in one-"

"Yeah but, what about money Marls?" He asked worriedly.

"Well my dorm-room was free as part of my full scholarship anyway, so it's not like I'm paying for nothing there…and, as far as paying rent for here goes, I'm working it out. I have enough saved up to pay for this month and a little bit next month. It's not exactly upper Manhattan you know, it's actually kinda cheap for its size, and I'm only paying half of it, of course…" she reasoned.

"That's great, but it still _costs money…_and, you know, Marley, you're…" he stalled, not wanting to say something like 'Marley, you're poor,' even though that's the message he was trying to convey. Luckily, Marley got the gist anyway.

"I know what you're trying to say, Ry. I don't exactly have money, especially since I had to replace my wardrobe and Santana wouldn't exactly let me buy stuff unless she vetoed it first, and she doesn't exactly have cheap taste, but, anyway…I can get a part-time job or something."

"You make it sounds so easy," Ryder chuckled, but not managing to conceal his worry. Marley remained silent on the other end for a few seconds.

"Am I being super naïve here?" She asked.

"Kinda, yeah," Ryder sighed. "Look, I can't tell you what to do, but if you really start struggling for cash, I think you should go back to your dorm," he warned her.

"I promise. But I'm going to do everything to make sure that doesn't have to happen." She told him firmly.

"Ok. Thank you. What about your other things? Your laptop and stuff, won't you have to pay for those to be replaced?"

"I'm waiting to hear back from my insurance company," she told him. "For now it's cell phone only and borrowing Santana's laptop when she's out, or using the campus library computers, that's why I had to call you instead of skype. It sucks, but I'll deal with it, hopefully it won't be for too long. Anyway, enough about my troubles, what about you?"

"More of the same," Ryder sighed. "Work sucks and I miss you…and before you give me another lecture, I've looked at other options and I'm stuck…which makes me think I should just continue with this pharmacy crap and meet you in New York next year, get a lame but well paying job from it or something," he huffed, happy to wallow in self-pity since Marley was doing the same…or _had_ been, now she was apparently living some bizarre bachelorette-like existence with a 21 year old New Yorker.

"If you think that's for the best…" she mumbled sadly.

"Well in an ideal world I want two things," he explained. "One, to be closer to you. Two, to earn a living doing something I enjoy. In a year I can have one of those things, which is better than nothing." Marley simply sighed by way of reply. "Anyway," he continued. "I'd better go, I have this dinner thing with my extended family I have to get ready for…"

"Ok," she said. "I'd better let you go then. Have a good evening, I love you."

"I love you too," he told her earnestly. "Bye."

Ryder hung up, and pulled himself off of his bed to get changed into something his parents would deem acceptable for tonight, but stalled immediately in shock at the sight of his Father stood in his doorway.

"Holy crap Dad, you scared me," he breathed. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Do you really feel that way, son?" He asked, rather than answering Ryder's own question.

"About what?" Ryder asked, confused.

"The internship. You really hate it that much?"

Ryder swallowed, wondering whether to please his father or tell the truth. Eventually he decided on the latter, and nodded slowly.

"I thought so," Mr Lynn sighed, walking in, and sitting next to his son on his bed. "Me and your mother have been talking," he explained. "We decided that…maybe it was wrong of me to make you do something you don't want to do. And we both agreed on how proud we are that you buckled down and did it anyway because you thought it'd make us happy, even if it made you miserable. I've been really hard on you, but you've been a credit to us these past few months…even in what you did for Marley. Sure, we'd still rather you hadn't done that, and that you were currently doing your football scholarship, but…basically what I'm trying to say it that these past few months have shown me that, despite his faults, my son is a really selfless human being. I'm proud of you, Ryder."

"Um…thanks?" Ryder said with an almost questioning tone, utterly confused at his father's sudden and unexpected praise.

"Ryder…we decided on one last thing, your Mother and I," said Mr Lynn. "If you want to quit your internship, you can." Ryder's face lit up, and his chin dropped.

"I can?" He asked in disbelief.

"Sure you can. You're pushing 19 years old, you're an adult now. Like I said, it was wrong for me to push you into it in the first place, so if you wanna quit, quit. Find a career that makes _you_ happy, not someone else. Find a _place _that makes you happy. Now I'm gonna hazard a guess that you're gonna be jumping straight on a plane to New York and your girlfriend, but the decision is yours. Hell, even if you wanna go…I don't know, save elephants in Kenya, I'm not gonna stand in your way, as long as it's what you want."

"You honestly wouldn't mind if I moved in with Marley without any kind of job plan?"

"A _job_ plan, you need. You're getting a job as soon as you can when you go there, even if it's pulling pints in some seedy bar, you need money and I'm not financing your life…but…you don't need a _career_ plan before you go; that's something you can work out there. So basically yes. I wouldn't mind if you drop everything and go to New York without knowing what you want to do for the rest of your life."

Ryder simply grinned, speechlessly coming to the realisation that soon he would be in New York with Marley. His father looked at him questioningly.

"Dad…I don't know what to say…_thank you."_

"Thank _you _Ryder. Thank you for showing me I was wrong about you. And thank your Mom as well, I confess I still needed a bit of convincing from her. Speaking of your mother…we'd better get ready for this dinner. You know she'll whip us both if we're late," he chuckled.

When his father left him to get changed, he couldn't help but break out into one of his signature end-zone dances. He briefly considered giving Marley a quick ring to tell her the good news, before deciding to keep it a surprise until he arrived in New York City.

**Woohoo! Ryder will be joining Marley in NYC shortly! What do you think about that people? Please tell me below :)**

**PS. Apologies to Dynamic Duo readers, I know I'm overdue an update and I'm working on it but have severe writer's block with that story…hopefully in the next couple of days! **

**Dear reviewers:**

_**Ember411: **_**Ahaha, I would too lol. Here's the update :p**

_**TeaAndGlee: **_**Aw, that's so sweet, I'm glad you love the story :')**

_**RocioMelinatic-Ryley15: **_**Woohoo! I'm glad you like Martana too!**

_**Savannaramirez35: **_**Hooray, this makes me happy :) Here is your update!**

_**Guest: **_**Yay! Oh I won't, don't worry- there will be more Bree in future chapters :)**

**Lauren xxx**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey all! Hope you enjoy this chapter! Might just finally be getting a reunion ;)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or the characters, yadda yadda yadda**

Despite the unconventional living circumstances Marley now found herself in, she finally felt like she was getting a more conventional college experience, social life wise, at least. That is to say that, whereas she had spent most of her nights in her dorm with Bree shut away feeling lonely, bored and sorry for herself, now she spent them being smuggled into night clubs by Santana, who was 21, attending house parties hosted by her popular, and often rich, senior friends, and often socialising with other people too, whilst Marley's roommate was off seducing attractive girls they would meet on their way.

There was also the fact that Santana was staying true to her word of attempting to 'make a real New Yorker out of Marley.' This, Marley learnt, involved a new wardrobe and a new confident attitude. Sometimes Santana would set her challenges whilst they were out partying, such as, leaving her alone with a douchebag guy and expecting her to talk her way out of his advances with as much sass as possible, or, perhaps even worse, leaving her alone with her ex-roommate Rachel Berry, whom she affectionately (or perhaps not,) referred to as 'hobbit', and challenging Marley to hold her own and make a mark in a conversation that Rachel, who was perhaps the only person Marley had ever met who was _louder than Santana,_ would usually try and turn into a presentation of her life and many achievements. According to Santana's latest review of Marley's progress, she was 'doing well but there was still room for improvement.' Marley considered that to be pretty good going after just a couple of weeks.

It was her quiet hope that, by the time Ryder came to visit, she would be confident enough in her own skin to take their relationship that stepfurther. That, she reminded herself, would all depend on how icy their relationship was by the time he arrived; Ryder was avoiding much contact with her at the moment for fear of revealing a 'surprise' to her, a surprise that she apparently wasn't allowed to know until her arrived in New York, essentially meaning that he was proposing a lack of contact between the two of them for another three weeks, which didn't please her one bit. Somewhat put out by her boyfriend's insistency on the matter, she became more and more determined to push on with her 'New Yorker' plans.

Perhaps Marley's favourite thing about the new found excitement that was her partying lifestyle, whatever the plans were, was the getting ready. Already, within the couple of weeks that she had been living with Santana, it had quickly become a habit that, on the nights that they went out, they would spend a good two hours getting dressed and made up, all the while with music blasting and their doors wide open so that they could wonder in and out of each other's rooms to borrow each other's stuff, (it was mainly Marley that did the borrowing and Santana that did the lending, but neither girl minded.) This would also be the time that they would start drinking- Santana would whip up a jug or two of some exotic cocktail or other for them to sip their way through as they got ready, and by the time they were glammed up, they were usually pretty buzzed too. They were now yet again carrying out this fun getting ready routine, in anticipation of yet another party at Rachel's, when they were interrupted from their preparations by a knock on the door.

"I'll get it," Marley called out from her bedroom, correctly assuming that Santana would have her hands full with some elaborate hair or make up tool. She trotted out through the living room whilst blowing on her drying nails, and over to the door, pulling it open and almost squealing in surprise at who stood there.

"Ryder?!"

"That's my name, don't wear it out," came the joking reply from the grinning boy before her, and before she could even register what she was doing, Marley was disregarding the quality of her nail polish and half-flying into his arms, jumping up and immediately wrapping her legs round his waist. Ryder took a second to adjust himself so that he could hold her comfortably, before chuckling at her enthusiasm.

"Surprise," he grinned.

"_This _was the surprise?" she asked, and he nodded, before Marley leant down to kiss him hungrily, until they were interrupted by a-

"Wanky!"

Santana stood in her bedroom doorway, sporting a wide-eyed confused, sarcastic grin caused by the passionate sight before her.

"Marley, as impressed as I am, aren't you forgetting your Ohio boy candy?" She asked, assuming that the young man her roommate was making out with in the doorway was some random hook-up, however un-Marley-like that would be.

Marley hopped out of Ryder's arms, her cheeks turning slightly pink.

"This is him!" She corrected her happily. "Santana meet Ryder, Ryder meet Santana."

"Ah. Heard a lot about you, boy candy," Santana told him by way of greeting. "Like seriously, she never shuts up about you-"

"Okay, thank you Santana," Marley interjected with a roll of the eyes, before turning to her boyfriend and placing her hands on his chest. "So…you're here like three weeks early," she chuckled.

"Yeah…there's kinda been a change of plan," he started. Marley raised an eyebrow, urging him to explain further. "My Dad and I had a talk last week and…well long story short, I'm outta Lima. He knew I didn't want to be there, doing that stupid internship, so…basically I'm here for the long run."

"You mean…you're _moving in?" _Marley asked with a slight squeal, the smile on her face stretching into a full grin.

"I'm moving to the city," he corrected, and she tried to hide her disappointment. "Obviously I wouldn't want to just intrude on your roommate's place, but…if it's okay I would love to stay here a couple days 'til I can find my own apartment or bedsit or something," he suggested, turning to Santana.

"Oh don't be so stupid," she said bluntly. "Why pay half-rent when I can pay third-rent? Besides, Marley has a double bed for you two to get nice and cosy in, so why not?"

"_Santana!" _Marley chastised her through gritted teeth, before realising what the latina was saying. "Wait, really? Ryder can move in?"

"Are you sure you don't mind? I don't wanna-"

"It's fine, seriously. Trust me, I bring girls home all the time and traumatise Marley with the sounds of our coital bliss, and she's a gem, she doesn't complain at all. I guess now's her chance for revenge," she chuckled, ignoring another embarrassed telling off from Marley before skipping back to her bedroom, pausing at the door and spinning briefly round again.

"You still coming tonight? I'm sure hobbit and co would love to meet your bf," she told them.

"We were going to go to Santana's ex-roomie's party tonight…would you wanna come, or are you too tired?" Marley asked Ryder.

"It's my first night with you in New York City," he told her with a smile. "I'll power through the tiredness." Marley broke out into a grin again as he lent down to connect their lips. "It feels so good to kiss you again," he whispered.

"Tell me about it," she replied, deepening their embrace until they realised that Ryder's suitcase was still in the hallway outside.

"Let's get your stuff in and then we can get ready to party?" She suggested.

"Sounds great," he replied, pecking her on the lips one last time before going to retrieve his belongings.

**WOOP, Ryley in NYC, just as it should be in canon! Please tell me what your thoughts are on this chapter, I'll love you forever :p**

**Dear chapter 3 reviewers:**

_**RocioMelinatic-Ryley15: **_**Hope you enjoyed the ryley reunion! Aww, you're too kind :p**

_**TeaAndGlee: **_**You'll have to wait and see, I have lots planned :p I liked writing Ryder's dad in chapter 3, too :p Here is your update my dear, I hope you liked it :)**

_**Ember411: **_**He sure is! And Marley too :)**

_**Chubby4567: **_**You're very welcome sweetheart, thank you for such a kind review :D**

_**Savannaramirez35: **_**Woot I know you love the ryley, so I'm hoping you will have enjoyed this chapter as well!**

_**Guest: **_**I'm also looking forward to writing Ryder coming into his own in New York, if that makes sense :)**

_**Jennoist4eva: **_**Thank you so much! Don't worry, I will definitely keep updating :)**

**Until next time, Lauren xxx**


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks for the awesome feedback to chapter 4! Hope you enjoy this one just as much :)**

**Disclaimer: Look, it's pretty simple. If I owned Glee, I wouldn't have to write fanfic. 'Kay?**

The illustrious penthouse apartment that Rachel Berry's rich fathers had bought for her when she had expressed the desire to move out of the rented place Santana now shared with Marley, to move in with her boyfriend Finn, whom her Dads thoroughly approved of, was probably the most exciting place Marley had been since her social life had well…begun, a couple of weeks ago. It even made Ryder's family's mansion-like abode back in Lima seem dull, and that was saying something. This was in turn also reflected on Ryder's face as they entered it, ready for the party, (walking in without bothering to knock, which was Santana's style.)

"It's amazing, isn't it," Marley whispered in his ear.

"It's like it's out of that dumb show where celebrities show you round their houses," he agreed.

"But if you think the place is insane, wait until you meet the _people," _she chuckled.

She was right. Just as Marley had only a couple of weeks earlier, Ryder had discovered mere minutes after being introduced, the crazy world of Santana, and in turn his girlfriend's, rich, savvy, attractive, and somewhat self-absorbed new friends. In their defence, he wasn't entirely dissimilar to them in spoilt upbringing and, until a few months ago, attitude, but they were all around three years older than him and Marley and still behaved like his seventeen year old self. It was a million miles away from Lima, where the two coolest guys in school aside from him, (until the whole catfish saga with Unique,) had been his best friend Jake, (with whom his friendship was still majorly fragmented, to say the least,) and a douche with a hockey stick and a greasy mullet.

But the thing that startled him the most? The change he saw in Marley.

The shy wallflower he had met and fallen in love at McKinley was barely recognisable in the confident New York social butterfly who now stood beside him, chatting animatedly to her friends, especially when he took the almost criminally short, tight cocktail dress she was wearing into consideration. The wardrobe change, he admitted to himself internally, he loved. As for the personality, he wasn't sure whether it was all a good thing or a bad thing yet…he reminded himself that this was only the first night, and Marley had drunk quite a lot, (and he had seen on more than one occasion last year how much she changed when she was drunk,) and she was, he hoped, over-excited to see him, so perhaps that also explained some of it. However, he couldn't quite shake the uncomfortableness, the sense that he was sticking out like a sore thumb, so once Marley had introduced him to the group, and they had finished fawning over the apparently 'famous' Ryder, he politely excused himself to go to the bathroom, actually with the intention of just strolling around the huge apartment, having a nose around, he admitted, and clearing his head.

"Dude, I see you without a beer in your hand, that is _criminal," _came a male voice, jogging him out of his thoughts. Ryder looked up to see another tall brown haired young man, taking a bottle out of the refrigerator and offering it to him with a warm smile.

"Thanks man," Ryder said gratefully. "Er…sorry, who are you?"

"I'm Finn Hudson, Rachel's boyfriend, I live here," the man explained, Ryder noting to himself that this was the guy that Santana had referred to as 'Frankenteen' on the way here in the taxi. "And you must be Marley's boyfriend, the oh so famous Ryder."

"Everyone keeps saying I'm famous, I don't get it," Ryder chuckled.

"Well that's cos we only met Marley like four times before tonight, and she's already told us all about you," he explained. Ryder looked down and tried not to smile too hard at this information. Finn Hudson continued to chat. "So how long are staying here? Gonna see much of the city or just spend time with her?"

"Well actually I'm kinda here permanently," Ryder told him.

"Dude, that's awesome! Welcome to NYC," he replied. "Man, it's gonna be great to finally have another guy in the core group who's kinda at an awkward loss when the girls are like _this,"_ he said, gesturing at Marley, Santana, Rachel and the couple of others, who were, thanks to the drinks that they were getting through very quickly, chatting animatedly amongst the throngs of other guests, squealing over one another and occasionally bursting into loud song when one of their favourites came on the huge expensive stereo in the corner of the vast living area.

"Crap," Ryder snorted. "Is my awkwardness that obvious?"

"Kinda, yeah," Finn admitted. "But I'm exactly the same when they're drunk. Don't worry, when they're sober they're not _quite _as…terrifying." He chuckled. "Anyway, hopefully soon some of my other friends from college are gonna show up, so us guys won't be so outnumbered. Then we can play beer pong or something, I don't know." Ryder grinned, relief flooding over him that he had found a like-minded person and potential male friend in Marley's female dominated friendship group. "Speaking of college, what are you doing here? Studying? Working?"

"I don't know yet," Ryder sighed. "I mean, working, I'm definitely gonna have to get some sort of job asap, but I haven't really figured out what my…purpose is, I guess…which kinda terrifies me," he admitted.

"That's ok. I didn't figure out I wanted to study teaching for a while after I graduated high school. I'm 22 now but I'm only in my sophomore year in college. I worked in a café for two years before I worked out what I wanted to do with my life. There's no rush."

"That makes me feel a lot better," Ryder replied.

"But…if you don't mind me asking, didn't you want to play pro football? Last weekend Marley got so drunk, like I mean, freaking shit-faced. She started crying about 'being a bitch and ruining Ryder's football scholarship'," he explained with a slightly nervous chuckle, unsure of whether or not it was wise to have brought up the subject. Ryder sighed loudly.

"See, that's the other thing I have to figure out…I have to figure out how to stop her feeling so guilty over it all. But yeah. That kinda happened. But it wasn't because she was a bitch, she's just a total drama queen when she drinks," he chuckled, before recounting the story of how it had all really happened. "And therein lies my problem," he explained with a slight slur, once he had finished, the beers they had been chain-drinking beginning to take their toll. "I only want to do football, but I _can't."_

"That sucks man, but you'll figure something out. And in the meantime, there's a bunch of bars and diners near the diner where Rachel works which are almost always hiring," he advised. "Anyway. I'm glad we had this talk, but let's stop being so serious, this is a party after all," he chuckled. "I'll go see if Rachel wants us all to start playing some drinking games now, since the other guys aren't here yet."

"Cool. And…thanks man. I really appreciate it," replied Ryder.

"Anytime," Finn said with a sincere smile, holding out his hand to shake, before going over to try and negotiate with Rachel. Ryder caught Marley's eye, holding two thumbs up when she mouthed, 'are you ok?', and earning a warm smile in response.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

By the time that Marley, Ryder and Santana got back to the apartment that as of now they all shared, it was so far into the early hours of the morning, that the sky was no longer dark, and was in fact turning into a dawn blue. When Marley and Ryder went into their now shared bedroom, Marley slumped down on the bed, Ryder chuckling at her whining about her sore feet, before sitting down next to her and running a hand through her long brown hair.

"Did you have fun tonight baby?" She almost cooed sleepily.

"I did," he replied with a smile, before adding, "you're so adorable when you're tired."

"I saw you talking to Finn," she told him, pulling herself up to peck him on the cheek.

"Yeah. He seems like a cool guy. Gave me a lot of advice. Maybe he can be a bit like to me like what Santana is to you," he mused.

"That would be nice," she agreed. "So…which side of the bed do you want?" She asked, looking down and blushing slightly.

"Oh…oh. I mean, I don't really mind, I usually just slept in the middle of my double back home, so, whatever you prefer I guess," he stammered. It had suddenly and very awkwardly dawned on them both that from now on they were going to be _sharing a bed_. They hadn't done that before. Millie had strictly banned them from having sleepovers, so until now, it was uncharted territory.

"Can I take the left side?" Marley asked shyly, receiving a nod and a smile in reply. "Okay, well…I'll just go and get changed into my pjs in the bathroom," she said quickly and avoiding eye contact, jumping up to retrieve them and disappearing out of the room. Ryder stripped down to his boxers, his usual sleeping attire, before waiting for her to return. After five more minutes or so, he heard a knock on the bedroom door.

"Ryder…can I come in?" She asked.

"Sure," he replied, and she crept shyly inside, eyes widening slightly before she managed to compose herself at the sight of her boyfriend's bare chest. "Err…is it okay if I sleep just like this?" he asked.

"Yeah," she breathed, eyes still trained on his toned torso and muscular arms. "Um, bathroom's free," she added, now looking at the floor and flushing red. Ryder looked at her quizzically, before deciding to leave it and go complete his nightly routine. When he returned to the bedroom, Marley was snuggled up in bed, waiting for him to join her, which he did, walking over to the right side and sliding under the duvet, feeling surprised when she instantly snuggled up to him and pressed her lips to his own.

"I'm so happy you're here," she whispered. "I love you."

"I love you too. And I can definitely get used to Marley cuddles every night," he said boldly. She looked away briefly before kissing him again, then pulling away to turn off the bedside lamp and plunging the room into darkness. Ryder felt her warm body press up against him, and wondered if she was going to do anything else, but it seemed she just wanted to be spooned to sleep.

"Night Ryder," she said, mid-yawn.

"Night Marls," he replied, before the exhaustion prompted by his plane journey and hours of partying caught up on him also, and he quickly joined her in a deep slumber.

**Muahaha, I'm such a tease ;) Lots in that chapter, so please tell me what you thought!**

**Dear chapter 4 reviewers:**

_**RocioMelinatic-Ryley15: **_**Hehe no problem, the more reviews, the merrier :p Thank you so much! I'm glad you like the way I like the characters, and I'm glad you loved the ryley reunion…if only we could have a ryley reunion in real life :)**

_**Ember411: **_**Bree wasn't in this chapter, she may be making further appearances but there's other things to be more concerned/excited about coming up ;)**

_**Guest 1: **_**Yay! Glad you're enjoying it so far!**

_**Guest 2: **_**Can they stay this happy forever? Hmm, I can't give anything away ;) I agree! Glee missed out big time when they didn't put them together :/**

_**TeaAndGlee: **_**There'll be ryley in abundance from now on :) Glad you like Santana too, I obviously usually write Ryder and Marley who are such sweethearts, so I do wonder if I write Santana well enough as she's so different :p**

_**Savannaramirez35: **_**Ugh I know, ryley anywhere in canon on the show is all I want…sigh. We have to make do with fanfics and rps instead…here's the update!**

**Lauren xxx **


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey all! Hope you enjoy the chapter :)**

**Disclaimer: Glee is not mine.**

The first weekend with Ryder living with her in New York had seemed almost too perfect, so it was only natural that reality showed up on the Monday. The reality being, Ryder needing to find a job to pay his third of the rent and bills, no matter how mundane it was, until he truly 'found himself', so he was going to devote every day until success to traipsing round New York, trying to find somewhere that would hire a guy who hadn't worked a day in his life until an internship which he had quit after less than two months. He had to admit that, on paper, that didn't look great from a prospective employer's point of view, which was probably why, after four days, he hadn't got so much as an interview at even the seediest of bars. However, he did have a whole lot of determination in return for his lack of experience, and he wasn't going to stop until he'd found something.

Meanwhile, Marley was back to her usual classes, not that she didn't enjoy most of them, particularly those connected to her music major, which she adored. She had, at this moment in time, just gotten out of her absolute favourite class at NYADA, song-writing, where her eccentric but kindly teacher would have his students lose themselves in the headphones connected to their keyboards, uttering words of encouragement as they composed lyrics and melodies. To her disgruntlement, Marley had to leave class twenty minutes early today to attend a meeting with the new NYADA accommodation officer who had emailed her, after a meeting with her RAs, wanting to know why one of them had reported that she had gone AWOL from her dorm room without alerting the school, despite still being enrolled as a student.

"I'm sorry," Marley mumbled, when she was sat in the messy office, the new employee clearly still in the process of unpacking. "I just…a better living arrangement came up, and since I don't have to pay for the room, I didn't think it was a problem," She explained, electing to leave out her reasons for leaving, since Bree was still hassling her in class, and she didn't want to exacerbate things any more than she (and Santana, of course,) already had.

"Regardless of whether or not fees are involved, you have to tell NYADA what you're doing. Imagine if the building burnt down and you weren't marked present when it was evacuated," the accommodation officer, a stout, frowning middle-aged woman, chastised.

"Sorry," Marley repeated. "I didn't think of that."

"No, you didn't," the woman said sternly, before reaching for her computer keyboard.

"Am I in some sort of trouble?" Marley asked, biting her lip anxiously, hating the idea of having to tell Ryder, who had disapproved of the initial move, if she was.

"No," came the relenting reply, and Marley sighed with relief. "It's done, we know now. We do, however, need your new address. It's policy for NYADA to have up to date contact details on all students."

Once Marley had given the lady the details she required, she was allowed to go, rolling her eyes at her unnecessary severity once she was out of eyeshot, before leaving campus to go home.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

When she arrived back at the apartment, Ryder was still out job-hunting, and Santana was presumably still in class, since, as a senior, she had to work hard in the last year before graduation, especially with having to counteract the perhaps detrimental effects of her partying lifestyle. Marley took the opportunity of a quiet, empty apartment to snuggle up in bed and take a necessary afternoon nap, and was just beginning to doze off when she heard the door open, her sleepy eyes flickering open just in time to see her frustrated-looking boyfriend enter, and flop down on the bed beside her with a tired sigh.

"No luck?" she asked sympathetically, already knowing the answer, and reaching out to brush his unruly windswept hair out of his face and caress his cheek. Ryder merely sighed in reply. "You wanna talk about it?" she continued.

"There's not much to say. I need a job but I can't get one," he said bluntly, hoisting himself up to sit back and lean against the headboard, before adding, "how was your day?"

"Good, until I got told off by the new accommodation lady about leaving my dorm without telling them," she replied with an eye-roll, before realising that Ryder probably wouldn't be very impressed…which is why she was surprised when he was suddenly hovering above her with a wicked grin plastered across his face, his warm hands dropping down to touched her stomach…to tickle her mercilessly until she had to screech her pleas for him to stop at the top of her lungs.

"What as that for?!" She laughed once she had recovered.

"That's for being naughty and not telling your school where you live," he chastised her playfully.

"Well maybe I…don't want them to stalk me?" She tried to justify, earning nothing but a raised eyebrow from her boyfriend.

"I totally told you so," he said smugly.

"_Actually, _you told me I shouldn't move here at all," she reminded him, sitting up to face him properly. "And guess who's now moved here too," she quipped, poking her tongue out and receiving a soft poke in the stomach in return.

"Dammit," Ryder joked, knowing he had lost that one, before his tone turned more serious. "Well…I had to. I couldn't stand…how things were, any longer."

"You mean how things were _between us?" _She asked quietly, reaching for both his hands. Ryder nodded.

"I mean how, if you'd told me about the accommodation person a few days ago over the phone, it would have probably turned into an argument," he clarified.

"Yeah. Or we wouldn't have spoken long enough to even get onto the subject," she agreed. "But you know Ry, it's all gonna turn out okay. We just need to reconnect, is all. And let's face it, I think we're already doing that, if we're back to the tickling stage of comfort with each other already," she chuckled, biting her lip before hesitantly adding, "and, you know…sharing a bed," her cheeks turning pink, prompting a shy smile from Ryder. Things had been kept strictly PG so far, but in the back of their minds, they both wondered just how much longer Marley would want to wait, especially given the growing confidence her big city move had prompted.

"I love you," he told her simply, leaning in to peck her on the lips and pushing those thoughts to the back of his mind.

"I love you too," she told him without hesitation, as soon as they had parted. "Which is why I'm gonna spend every free second I have helping you find a job, in fact, I'm gonna start right now," she informed him, reaching over for her old laptop, which Ryder had had the forethought to bring her from Lima to replace her new, Bree-ruined one, before announcing, "I'm helping you make a proper resume."

Ryder smiled gratefully, pulling her gently back into his lap and leaning forward to rest his chin on shoulder and keeping his arms wrapped around her, as they began to work.

**Hope you enjoyed! Let me know what you thought. Any ideas of what's coming? Big stuff is happening/being set in motion in the next couple of chapters, I'm excited for you to read it :)**

**Dear reviewers:**

_**TeaAndGlee: **_**Aww, this makes me so happy. Hope you liked this chapter too :)**

_**Ember411: **_**There will definitely be more Finn in future :) Hope you enjoyed this instalment!**

_**RocioMelinatic-Ryley15: **_**Lol, sorry :p Oh good, hopefully you liked this one too.**

**Lauren xxx**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello you lovely people, first of all, I'm so sorry it's taken so long to update- I am getting caught up in revision for finals, so yeah. Then I was gonna update on Friday or yesterday, but I got distracted by one hell of a jennoist riot :p Secondly: PLEASE READ THE AUTHORS NOTE AT THE END OF THE CHAPTER, EVEN IF YOU DON'T USUALLY. IT'S IMPORTANT (good important, not bad important) :p**

**Disclaimer: I didn't own Glee last time, and funnily enough, I haven't acquired ownership in the past few days either, so…**

"Here Ry, here," Marley told her boyfriend, directing him down a different street, where there was a large and currently hiring bar that a friendly guy named Rob from her musical theory class worked at, and had, on Marley's request, managed to get Ryder an interview. They reached the place and paused outside, Ryder reaching up to frantically fix his hair, which, due to its length, had a tendency to become easily windswept.

"How do I look?" he asked Marley, wanting to make a good impression.

"Very handsome," she replied sincerely, smiling sweetly and giving him a quick kiss. "You should go in, you're due in five minutes and it'll be a good impression if you're extra punctual. I'll wait for you out here, maybe browse in that thrift store over there. Good luck!"

"Thanks," he breathed out, with a tellingly nervous sigh, before leaving her outside and entering the bar.

Marley tried to remain discreet as she watched him shake hands through the window with who she presumed was the manager, as she crossed her fingers inside her pockets, where she was shielding her hands from the cool Autumn breeze. To say that she really hoped this would be it was an understatement; she had been helping out Ryder for several days now to no avail- the CV they had created together had scored a couple more interviews than before, but they had still come to nothing. However, Rob had told her that this place was getting quite desperate for staff, so perhaps Ryder's lack of experience wouldn't be such a defining factor here.

Marley distracted herself from the worry of Ryder's employment issues by allowing her mind to drift onto another defining thing: Ryder's shoulders and arms in the tight shirt he was wearing. She couldn't pretend she hadn't been thinking about it more and more lately. It was probably the sharing a bed thing, and how easy it now was for her and Ryder to, before they even knew it, turn chaste, pre-sleep cuddles into passionate, at times hour long make out sessions, hands wandering to places they previously wouldn't have done. A few nights ago, during one of these encounters, Marley had even taken both Ryder's hands off her waist, and confidently placed them on her chest, taking delight in his own glee- and it had been that way since.

It had actually nearly happened, she recalled with a silent grimace, one night in summer, when they had gotten home from a date to find that Millie was still on her late shift at the restaurant she was working at until the new McKinley term started. Rather than kissing Ryder goodbye then him driving home immediately, she had invited him in, sensing an opportunity for more goodbye kisses than usual, without the watchful hawk-eye of her mother. They had been making out on the couch, and Marley had realised what she wanted. One thing had been on its way to leading to another, both their shirts had been shed, and jean buttons were being popped when they had gotten the jump of their lives upon hearing Millie opening the front door, and Marley's mother had found two dishevelled, just about re-dressed, and _very _embarrassed teenagers in the living room.

Things had been slightly awkward in the few days that had followed that unfortunate interruption, and by that time, Marley was off to NYADA and their spark was fading- but now they were living together, spending so much time together, and the spark had been very much rekindled into a roaring fire. Marley knew one thing.

She was ready.

Marley was interrupted from her epiphany by Ryder, his expression hard to read.

"That was quick!" she exclaimed. "How'd it go?"

Rather than saying anything, he grinned instead.

"They gave you a job?" She asked with a delighted squeal.

"Sure did," he replied happily. "Only just over minimum wage, but it's a start, right? And they don't have much staff right now so they said I can have as many hours as I want so…yeah! I start on Monday!"

"Baby that's so great," Marley whispered, standing on her tiptoes to give him a congratulatory kiss. "I'm so proud of you." Ryder smiled bashfully in response, taking her hand, before they both made their way towards the subway to go home.

{x}

It was late evening, and they were both getting ready for bed, beginning their usual routine of changing separately before they joined again- or so Ryder thought. He turned, and was shocked to see Marley pulling her t-shirt daintily over her head, leaving her in just her jeans and bra, before looking at him right in the eye and smiling at him in a way he had only ever seen her smile once before- on that night in summer before her Mother had interrupted them.

"Oh…um…" he stumbled out, his mouth immediately becoming dry as his eyes fixed on her toned abs, (no doubt helped by her rigorous dance classes,) and the small but pert breasts which were now only just hidden by her pink lace bra. "Did you want me to leave the room while you-"

"No," she told him immediately. Ryder opened his mouth to speak, but merely exhaled heavily, his mouth hanging open at the sight before him. Marley took this has a sign to continue talking.

"I've…been thinking a lot," she started, blushing slightly, "about us. About me. About what I want, what I'm ready for…Ry…" she trailed off, trying to calculate the best way to convey what she was trying to tell him. "I just…well you know how I was pretty much ready in summer…when we nearly…you know…"

Ryder gulped, and nodded, urging her to continue when she paused to yet again carefully choose her words.

"…Well…I'm there. I want to." She said simply, gesturing at her own bare torso as if to accentuate the message. "I love you, and I know you love me, and I'm ready for us to express our love in every way. _Every _way." she explained. "I mean…_you _still want to, right?" she asked, a nervous giggle escaping her lips as Ryder's dumbstruck expression didn't go unnoticed.

"_Yes_," Ryder blurted out immediately. "_Hell yes. _I'm just surprised you're being so…I don't know…forward…cos, y'know, you're…a…a virgin…" he stumbled out, and Marley chuckled.

"Just because I'm a virgin," she told him, "doesn't mean I don't have…urges."

If Ryder's mouth wasn't already hanging open, it really would have been after _that _comment. Marley chuckled again and stepped towards him, close enough to reach up and kiss him on the lips, surprisingly chastely, given what she was suggesting. With that, she took one step back again, nimble hands reaching down to pop the button on her jeans and slip them down, kicking them and her socks off her feet until she was left in just her underwear, before stepping towards him again. Ryder looked down, taking in almost all of her body.

"You're so beautiful," he breathed out. "I love you."

"Show me," she whispered shakily, the nerves making themselves known. "Show me just how much you love me."

Ryder leant down to connect their lips, once, twice, three times, before pulling away and removing his own shirt, delighting in the way Marley's eyes roamed hungrily over his chest, before taking her hand and leading her to the bed.

{x}

When Ryder awoke the next morning, he became immediately aware of the sensation of smooth bare skin amongst his own, and his mouth curled into a smile as he opened his sleepy eyes to take in the sight of his nude girlfriend, sleeping curled up in a small spoon position against him, her hair cascading over the pale skin of her exposed shoulder. He pulled himself away from her as gently as possible in order to leave the bed and pull on his boxers to get some breakfast, allowing him the opportunity to truly _look _at her, perhaps more glorious than ever in the morning sun which shone through the crack in the curtains…or maybe it was just the memory of what they had done last night which was making him biased. Either way, Ryder wasn't sure he had ever been this happy. He was living in a big city with his perfect girlfriend, the perfect girlfriend who now trusted and loved him enough for them to make love last night. When he had taken it all in, he returned to bed. Breakfast could wait a little while longer. It was a Saturday, which meant he didn't have anywhere else to be…and where would he rather be, than holding Marley in his arms?

**IMPORTANT: Okay, now before you yell at me and say, 'why didn't you write any smut?' DO NOT FEAR. I'M GOING TO! It's just I wanted to keep this story safely in a T rating, so I didn't do it here. HOWEVER, I am (assuming you all want it,) going to grow a pair and write an M rated outtake-one shot of all the smutty details of what happened in between Ryder leading Marley to bed and waking up…I'm a little nervous, but if there's one thing ryley fanon needs, it's more smut, so I'm going to do my bit :p You can expect it sometime this week or next week.**

**Anyway. On to my reviewers from last time:**

_**Ember411: **_**He did :) I do enjoy a bit of Gilmore Girls, although I never watched it religiously. Lorelai is one of my many spirit animals though :p**

_**RocioMelinatic-Ryley15: **_**Why, thank you :)**

_**TeaAndGlee: **_**Aww, happy late birthday! Hope you liked this one too :)**

_**Guest: **_**Thank you so much! Ryley are perf, I wish rib had realised that…**

_**Savannaramirez35: **_**Thanks, hope you liked this chapter too, and sorry about the delay!**

_**Jennoist4eva: **_**Finn will be returning, I can assure you :) Well, don't you just read my mind! I assume you'll be reading the smutty outtake when it arrives, then ;) **

**Lauren xxx**


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